Chapter 8: The Good Teacher: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

This is a true story that recently happened in China. The hero of the story was a very common yet very good university science teacher. His death evoked a wide social response and provided a basis for discussion on being a good teacher, especially a good university teacher. Whatever opinions people held in the discussion, they all thought highly of him and his deeds. A devoted teacher who not only gives good instruction in class but also extends his or her deep care and love for students outside class has been praised in China for thousands of years.

Today, teachers in China are exhorted to follow in the steps of a teacher such as Yan in the above story. The emphasis is on caring for each student not only in terms of subject knowledge but more importantly in terms of his or her development as a person both within and outside the classroom. Such views of the qualities a teacher should posses are intended to influence Chinese views of what is a good teacher.